About MNCCTN

 

Removing Barriers

Many community clinics do not have the resources to establish the necessary infrastructure, such as equipment, staff, and training, to conduct clinical trials. By bringing cancer clinical trials directly to those living in greater Minnesota, MNCCTN breaks down barriers like:

  • Distance. Prior to MNCCTN, cancer clinical trials were available in limited locations. 

  • Time. Traveling to these few locations required significant time away from work and family. 

  • Costs. Traveling incurs many indirect costs to patients such as fuel, lodging, and meals. 

  • Comfort. A familiar setting, doctors, and being ‘at home’ reduce the emotional burden on participants. 

Expanding Knowledge

In addition, access to a larger portion of the state's population helps researchers move successful treatments through the clinical trials process more quickly, expanding knowledge and advancing the time in which new treatments and cures are available to the general public. 

For Providers 

  • Knowledge of and access to new treatment options
  • Enhancing the overall understanding of cancer
  • Research training for physicians, nurses, and front-line staff 
  • Opportunities for continuing education and collaboration

For All Minnesotans

  • General understanding of clinical research 
  • Impact of clinical research 
  • What it is like to participate in research 
  • Understanding their increased options for care 
  • How to talk to providers about clinical research participation 

 

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About MnDRIVE

The challenge.

Solutions to grand challenges require cooperation; bringing together experts and resources. Healthcare organizations in Minnesota have some of the leading experts in cancer research and care. By working together, we can accelerate our work to a cure.

The impact.

MNCCTN has brought together these experts and resources to deliver cancer clinical trials to Minnesotans across the state. The benefits of the new cancer clinical trials network are threefold:

  1. Providing doctors with equitable knowledge of and access to new treatment options to enhance their understanding of the disease and increases options for patient care; 
  2. Improving patient outcomes by increased participation in clinical trials, and
  3. Expediting the reduction of the burden of cancer on Minnesotans by engaging a broader population in clinical research.

MnDRIVE – Minnesota’s Discovery, Research, and InnoVation Economy – is a partnership between the University of Minnesota and the State of Minnesota that aligns areas of research strength with the state’s key and emerging industries to address grand challenges.